Abu Dhabi Ports was established in March 2006 by Emiri Decree No., as a master developer of ports and industrial zones in Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi Ports was formed as part of the restructuring of the commercial ports sector in the emirate, and was given control and regulatory enforcement power over all commercial ports assets previously owned by the Abu Dhabi Seaports Authority. Khalifa Port, which was opened in September 2012, together with the development of the Khalifa Industrial Zone, are the major achievements of Abu Dhabi Ports to date. Through the planning and development of ports and industrial zones, the company continues to play a vital role in propelling economic growth in the emirate of Abu Dhabi.
Operations
Abu Dhabi Ports is a master developer and manager of ports and industrial zones in Abu Dhabi. It manages eleven commercial, logistics, community and leisure ports, including its flagship deep-water Khalifa Port. It is also developing Kizad. Located adjacent to Khalifa Port, Kizad serves a range of logistics and manufacturing investors and is destined to grow into one of the world's largest industrial zones. By 2030, Khalifa Port and Kizad are expected to contribute up to 15% of the emirate's non-oil GDP. The first-phase development of this megaproject reflects an investment of AED 26.5 billion and has been described as the “single most important project in Abu Dhabi’s economy”.
Other ports
Abu Dhabi Ports operates all commercial, logistics, community and leisure ports in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, including Zayed Port, the Free Port, Musaffah Port and the five Western Region Ports in Al Gharbia that support local industry, fishing, tourism, logistics and leisure activities. It also operates the New Musaffah Channel, which links Musaffah Port to the sea.
Responsibilities
Abu Dhabi Ports is responsible for ensuring efficient operations across Abu Dhabi's commercial seaports. Under its remit, the organisation spearheads the maintenance, upgrading and development of all ports in its portfolio.
Khalifa Port
has a Phase 1 capacity of 2.5 million TEU containers and 12 million tonnes of general cargo a year and an expected capacity of 15 million TEU containers and 35 million tonnes of general cargo by 2030. It features the region's only semi-automated container terminal, some of the world's largest automated ship-to-shore cranes, and other container handling equipment. After reaching 905,000 TEUs in 2013, a rise of 17 percent, container traffic at Khalifa Port is expected to climb to around 1.1 million TEUs by the end of 2014, a further increase of 22 percent.
Economic diversification and value-added industrial manufacturing are core components of the Abu Dhabi EconomicVision 2030. Kizad launched with Kizad Area A comprising 51 square kilometres, while by 2030, Kizad Area A and B will form one of the largest industrial zones in the world at 418 km2. Kizad's anchor investor, Emirates Aluminium, which aims to be one of the world's largest single-site aluminium smelters, began operations in 2009. New logistics and heavy industry manufacturing investors are expected to begin operations from Kizad in 2014.
